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Brief an assistant to handle recruiter emails safely

  • For Job seekers
  • You practice Setting limits and rules
  • Time about 5 minutes

About this exercise

You're job hunting and want an AI assistant to work through recruiter emails. Write its brief: you're only free Tuesday and Thursday afternoons for interviews, never give a salary number (say you're open to discussing the range), treat any request for ID or bank details as a possible scam for ASK_HUMAN, and draft (never send) replies. Output exactly 6 numbered plain-text lines, one per email in order and then DONE, under 160 words in total.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Not showing the log format. Left alone, the AI writes a friendly report with headings instead of a checkable action log. Try: Show it literally: "Format every line like 1. ACTION: tool(args), then ASK_HUMAN: and DONE: lines. Plain text."
  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting and runs long, especially when it explains each step. Try: Cap each line instead: "each line under 20 words, no explanations."
  • No scam rule. The AI treats an onboarding email as routine and starts the paperwork. Try: Add: "Any request for SSN, ID or bank details goes to ASK_HUMAN as a possible scam."
  • Not giving your availability. The AI picks the first slot offered or asks the recruiter to choose. Try: Add: "I'm free only Tue and Thu afternoons. Draft replies, never send."
  • No salary rule. The AI helpfully names a market-rate number for you. Try: Add: "Never give a number. Say I'm open to discussing the range."

What a strong prompt includes

  • Gives your availability
  • Sets a salary rule
  • Watches for scams
  • Says draft, never send
  • Shows the action-log format

Practice this now ↑

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